Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1887-07-08
GIVEN UP FOR DEAD,
No Longer Any Hope Of Finding the
Impriseued Miners Alive.

NO Longer Any Hope Of Finding the
Inprissned Miners Alive.
Virginia New Entsrprss. July 81
All hope of finding alive the six
men imprisoned in the Best & Belcher
drift has now departed from the
hearts Of our people. It was yester.
day morning asoertained by descend.
ing.the Bonner shaft Gould & Curry
mine) to the depth of 80 feet below
the 13oO-level, to the top of the caved
ground which fills the shaft to hight
Of ITO feet above the 1900 station,
that the compressed air pipe had been
broken. The break doubtless occur
red At the time of the cave in the
shaft, which took place shortly after
the FIRE broke out in the east station
at the head of the incline. Thus it
will be- seen that none Of the air sent
in through the pipe could have
reached the men. All of the air sent
through it was discharged into the
shaft at the top of the cave, as was
the water sent through it with the air
in the hope that it was reaching tho
entcmbed men.
On finding that the pipe was
broken, the air-compressor was stop.
ped, but the blower is still kept
running. sThe large galvanized iron
pipe leading from the blower may be
battered and compressed in places,
but it is thought that it is not broken
apart in any place. Mining men say
that such a pipe, on account Of it's
yielding nature, will stand more rough
usage than will the heavier pipe like
gas-pipe) used for conducting COM
pressed air.
KILLED BY THE GAS,
1t is now thought that the men
were killed by the gas almost at once
on the night of the FIRE, and the only
consolation is that their death was alb
solutely painless. All miners who
have been overcome by gas--and
there are many of them on the Com
stock--agree in saying that it is just
like falling asleep. Not the least
pain is felt, and men will say they are
feeling all right even at the moment
they are sinking to the ground. One
man who had apparently been dead
for an hour, says that he felt no pain
until he was being resuscitated, when
he suffered the "tortures of the
damned;" every bone in his body
seemed to be breaking into splinters.
Another man, brick mason who was
at work at bricking-up bulkhead in
the Consolidated California & Virginia
at the time the burning section was
being secured by bulkheads, was
overcome by the gas and did not
know it. He had walled in a space
before him to a hight level with his
face, and was therefore breathing the
escaping fumes. "More brick" said
he, VIXEN one of the men turned to
look at what he was doing, and saw
him sinking to the ground. "More
brick!" cried he as he settled agains,
the side of the bulkhead. A man
near by caught and supported him,
saying: "You don't want any more
brick just now" "More brick-more
brick!'' muttered the man. with his
head hanging limp on his breast. He
was promptly carried back and resus.
citated, but he had suffered all the
pain there was to suffer, and would
have died at the bulkhead murmuring:
"More brick-more brick !"
THE WORK OF THE REscUING PARTY
Is still being vigorously pushed for
ward, though not a man among the
workers has the slightest hope of find
ing the men alive. They are now
drifting both north and south from
the bottom of the inclined winze.